Progressive rabbi fights Religious Right (More drivel from the left_

Madison Capital Times & Wisconsin State Journal ^ | April 18, 2006 | Mary Bergin

[Graybeard58]

"So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken unto them, was received up into heaven, and sat down on the right hand of God."

-- Mark 16:19

Right hand. Right side. Right way. Religious Right.

It is easy to understand how conservative Christians have influenced politics and populace in America, says Rabbi Michael Lerner. It has been about taking ownership of the human need to feel valued, protected and directed.

The activist, author and former darling of the Clinton administration was on the Easter edition of "Meet the Press" to discuss faith, morality and politics and will speak in Madison on Saturday. (Details are here.)

Americans "hunger for some framework of meaning that can connect them to a higher purpose," Lerner writes in Tikkun, his Berkeley-based interfaith magazine, also a publication of critical thought. "They are sick and tired of competition, materialism and selfishness. And they hear these issues being addressed by the Religious Right."

He believes this segment of Christianity has "immense power" and is "a danger to American society" that is far greater than any U.S. president or political party. Changing public discourse is not simply a matter of electing a Democrat, Lerner says.

What is the danger? The Religious Right "creates a group of insiders and outsiders, and the outsiders are frequently demeaned," he argues. That can include gays and lesbians, ethnic and religious minorities, activists and others who question conservative theology.

A 2005 best-seller by evangelical Jim Wallis, "God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It," was one plea for more social justice, less punishment/power when defining Christianity.

Now Lerner has a new book that is along the same lines: "The Left Hand of God: Taking Our Country Back From the Religious Right" (HarperSanFrancisco, $24.95). It is about strategy as well as definitions.

"The Left Hand of God" is the guidebook for a movement "that is not just for people who believe in God or who are part of some religious community. It is equally inviting to those who are 'spiritual but not religious' and who recognize that a progressive movement today needs a spiritual foundation if it is to take our country back from the Religious Right."

Like Wallis, Lerner laments the tendency of liberals to avoid religion.

"There is no spiritually grounded vision of the world being taught by liberals and progressives," he writes. "The Left Hand of God is rarely articulated, has few institutions committed to promoting it and has no political force ready to champion it."

Separation of church and state is one thing, says Lerner, a Jewish Renewal rabbi (whose ordination is not acknowledged by Orthodox Jews). The separation of "spiritual wisdom, caring and love from state" is both inappropriate and has backfired as a political strategy.

"The left was most influential in this country when it was led by Martin Luther King Jr.'s very much church-based civil rights movement," Lerner says, in an interview with Dragonfly Media. He compares the work to be done to the women's rights movement because "success didn't come until huge numbers of women responded with their own actions."

"The Left Hand of God" contains the Spiritual Covenant with America, which outlines how politics can have a spiritual vision as its root. Among the goals, according to www.spiritualprogressives.org:

• An end to U.S. militarism and immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq.

• Action from the G-8 nations, which represent two-thirds of the world economy, to dedicate 5 percent of their gross domestic product (each year for 20 years) to eliminate global poverty.

• Adding a Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would require any corporation with an income of at least $50 million to get a new corporate charter every 10 years. A prerequisite would be proof of social responsibility, as judged by a panel of ordinary Americans.

This "new bottom line," Lerner hopes, would replace materialism and selfishness.

His Network of Spiritual Progressives will meet May 17-20 in Washington, D.C., for its second Spiritual Activism Conference.

[Graybeard58]

Adding a Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

How about an amendment that would require idiots like this to just shut up?

[Ann Archy]

There's what's Right, and then there's what's Left!!!

Michael Lerner is a Marxist!! Pro-abortion Marxist! He was Hillary's Guru!! He's a nut, also.

[Darkwolf377]

• An end to U.S. militarism and immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq.

• Action from the G-8 nations, which represent two-thirds of the world economy, to dedicate 5 percent of their gross domestic product (each year for 20 years) to eliminate global poverty.

• Adding a Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,

Isn't this called The New Age Movement? Emphasis on the last word.

[Ann Archy]

I forgot to add that he sounds VERY anti-Christian!!

[SampleMan]

The good rabbi will be shaking his finger at Christians right up to the point when the Muslims cut his head off.

[Right Wing Assault]

OK, now they need an article, "Conservative Rabbi fights 'religious' left"

[Graybeard58]

Ping.

Coming to Madison, Wisconsin. Aren't you just thrilled?

[thoughtomator]

I despise Godless atheists who wear the guise of clergy.

[MarkL]

Lerner laments the tendency of liberals to avoid religion

The problem isn't that liberals tend to avoid religion... The problem is that liberalism IS a religion. While conservatism happens to be a philosophy, it's a way of thinking that allows for differences of opinion. For the most part, I think that it's safe to say that most of the leaders of conservatism believe that most liberals are well meaning, but misguided. On the other hand, it seems that most who lead and speak for the liberals consider conservatives not as wrong, but as evil. Conservatives are mean. They're hateful. They're trying to reinstate slavery. They lie. etc... Mostly, it's projection, which allows they to be what they claim their enemies are.

Mark

[MarkL]

OK, now they need an article, "Conservative Rabbi fights 'religious' left"

Read anything by Rabbi Lappin.

Mark

[gaijin]

Guess who Lerner's BIGGEST PROTOGE is?

Hillary Clinton.

It's A FACT.

[Alex Murphy]

Ping to read later

[Dilbert San Diego]

Hillary Clinton is a "praying person", so she says. So she's religious.

Hillary Clinton is liberal.

Thus, you can be both liberal and religious.

[bill1952]

An end to U.S. militarism and immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq.

Yeah, you, Saddam, and Lenin. Give me a break

• Action from the G-8 nations, which represent two-thirds of the world economy, to dedicate 5 percent of their gross domestic product (each year for 20 years) to eliminate global poverty.

Dedicate= force working people to pay for those who do not

• Adding a Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would require any corporation with an income of at least $50 million to get a new corporate charter every 10 years. A prerequisite would be proof of social responsibility, as judged by a panel of ordinary Americans.

Aside from the fact that this concept is the oppisite of just about everything in the Constitution, is the fact that amendments are not added, they are ratified.

And since this is not a Communist Nation, it would be a hard sell

This "new bottom line," Lerner hopes, would replace materialism and selfishness.

With communism and Socialism.

[Nuc1]

"How about an amendment that would require idiots like this to just shut up?"

How appropriate I could get behind that one. This guy is one of the great leaders of the crackpots are us bunch. The real question is why do Americans listen to these dolts.

[joesnuffy]

Left wing nut rabid rabbi psuedo-Jew

imo

[ClaireSolt]

Just read that our opening of China has lifted 300m out of poverty. That's better than any social program of the UN has ever done.

The state just keeps trying to gobble up the church which developed schools, universities, orphanages, old folks home, and hospitals. The voracious, power hungry state has taken that all over and ruined it. Now they want to make their political platform equivalent to Christianty. Doesn't work for me.

btw MLK was a Republican.

[Dilbert San Diego]

So the G-8 nations will fight a war on poverty world wide??

Here in the United States, we have fought a war on poverty. And poverty won. So I don't know how we can fight poverty world wide. What can we do differently to eliminate poverty?

[VOA]

How about an amendment that would require idiots like this to just shut up?

Just my opinion...
but we need to give Lerner as much airtime as possible.
I've heard him pimping his book on talk radio and BookTV (C-Span2 weekends).
Lerner and his thoughts are so boring, they even put Democrats/Socialists/Lefties
to sleep.

Reminds me of hearing Angela Davis give a speech at UCLA against the
initiative to make California-state business race-blind.
The old "radical" was SO BORING that she could bearly keep the
UCLA faithful awake.
And the initiative passed, despite Ms. Davis.

[VOA]

"OK, now they need an article, "Conservative Rabbi fights 'religious' left" "

OK, MarkL beat me to it in post 10.
But here's a link for Rabbi Lapin's organization.

http://www.towardtradition.org/